A properly engineered hifi should be able to play all genre’s equally. I listen to lots of classic music on my 500/ProAc system and it’s the best I’ve heard. Rock, Jazz, Techno sound just as good.
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I have a pair of the 502SPs and I find they are happy with all genres, including classical which is 50% of my listening. I like that they are fast, easy to drive with my 250dr, and excellent with vinyl and my ND555 - even though it is having to hack through the arguably sub par pre in my 272… oh and the walnut gloss veneer is a big hit domestically😎 I have a sense they are not to everyone’s taste as the combo horn tweeter arrangement can be controversial for reasons I personally do not recognise. My wife loves them and has better ears,than I, we have a hifi nut friend who is also a fan. So there you go. Audition is probably vital, I didn’t, I just bought them but I can be rash and impulsive……
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I heard Audio Note mid level system twice. Voices were rendered so real and human that it was very impressive. I have never heard Naim capable of such thing, even if it can be very good. The timbers , tones and colours of instruments are staggering. Naim is not in the same league here, IMO. Even if very good on that area.
But Audio Note is lacking urgency, bass, and involvement. So globally, I find Naim better than Audio Note for all kind of music.
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Exactly. The idea of a ‘system for classical’ is a bit potty. I listen to everything from solo instruments to Nirvana and a decent system should play them all. It would be instructive if people who think classical should sound ‘sweet’ actually attended some recitals. A violin can sound screechy or mellow depending on the piece, and a decent system should simply show it as it is.
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Yesss… This is exactly why I switched to Naim from a full mid level Audio Note system before it. Plus the inconvenience of tubes. Can’t leave them on 24/7 and it took about 30 mins every time to come on song etc. Annoying. 
But I still miss the qualities from that AN system. Voices, acoustical instruments, ambience/atmosphere were to die for. Never heard anything like that on a solid state system.
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Hi,
I am familiar with classical concerts, and depending on the position seating of the listener and the hall’s acoustic, the orchestra sound more « mat » than over-detailled. In a concert hall, you can’t hear the breath of the musicians or the friction of the neck one the piano…all these details that make the fortune of hifi reviewers. When symphonies are performed, the dynamic is sometimes very important especially when the cuivre are involved.
Sure if an approximatif violinist plays in a leaving room at 2m from the host, it can sound harsh…
Exactly that, I could never heard something like that from solid states too, despite some reviews claiming that this particular solid state sounds like tubes.
I have an all tubes pre, and it doesn’t bother me to wait 45 mn before listening. I do something else in the meantime.
With Aries Cerat recently, it’s the first time I encounter near solid states dynamics and bass, with the rich, fluent and colourful sound of tubes. Aries Cerat uses massive power supply, it may explain.
My pre is very dynamic, from Ear Yoshino, but the amps unfortunately don’t have enough urgency and authority for my tastes. So I have a Naim amp.
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I was at a piano recital on Saturday morning at a church in Montpellier and amongst the Ravel and Chopin was 12 Notations by Pierre Boulez. The young (20 yo) pianist, Rudy Gatti, who is studying at the National Conservatoire in Paris made the piano sound quite terrifying at the end of the Boulez and it was at most a standard grand. Listening to that piece on Qobuz played by Marc Ponthus it wasn’t nearly so impactful but that wasn’t all down to my system I think. I could hear that he wasn’t hitting the piano nearly as hard at the end of the 12 Notation as Gatti did live and suspect it was for the sake of not overloading the microphones. I also have this piece on CD recorded by Pi-Hsien Chen and playing the rip, again the pianist holds back on the finale. The limitation isn’t just with the replay equipment.
Loved the singing tone Gatti had in the Chopin, I hope he keeps it up and we’ll see him on the main concert circuit one day. He played (premiered) his own composition as a third encore and I thought that showed promise too.
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